MyMedicalShopper: CDHPs Saving Companies Billions, But Employees Still Need Help Comparing Healthcare Costs

PORTSMOUTH, N.H., July 18, 2018 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- As Americans struggle to wrangle in healthcare costs, growing numbers of employers are offering higher-deductible plans called consumer-driven health plans (CDHPs). Many companies view CDHPs, with their lower premiums and accompanying tax-advantaged accounts, as a way to help protect the company's bottom line while still offering health benefits to employees. But even though these plans cost employers less, employees are unlikely to fully understand how to navigate their plan to keep their healthcare costs down. The solution, says MyMedicalShopper, is the inclusion of medical price transparency tools in these alternative benefits packages. These tools help employees comparison shop for their healthcare, allowing them to find the best services to fit their personal budgets.

According to one study, CDHPs could be key in saving as much as $118 billion in healthcare costs. (1) But even though more than 60% of American companies offer these types of plans as part of healthcare benefits packages, only about one-third of all employees choose to enroll in a CDHP. (1) Often confused with high-deductible health plans (HDHPs), CDHPs offer employees high-deductible plans that include some kind of tax-advantaged account such as a health savings account (HSA) or health reimbursement arrangement (HRA). (2) It's thought that these types of plans increase employees' personal accountability for keeping healthcare costs down by putting them on the hook for much of their healthcare expenditures.

But for employees living paycheck-to-paycheck—and those who aren't so health literate—enrolling in a CHDP could be seen as unaffordable. Since employees are left holding the check for most healthcare services they receive, out-of-pocket expenses can get quite costly before deductibles are met. Employees are more likely to be frustrated and stressed while trying to pay for enormous medical bills. Even worse, these types of plans may actually prevent employees from receiving needed care due to concerns about how much it will cost, resulting in worse overall health—plus more time missed from work. (3)

Mark Galvin, CEO of MMS Analytics, Inc. dba MyMedicalShopper, says, "Employers have a real opportunity to save huge amounts of money by offering their employees health insurance through CDHPs. The big mistake most companies make is not offering an employer-funded health savings account, which gives their employees some significant upside when they choose their care wisely. There's an opportunity for both employers and employees to win with smart health plan designs, but from what we're seeing in the market, many employers are missing this opportunity to date."

Galvin continues, "But even with well-designed plans, employees still need help figuring out how to save as much as possible on the healthcare services they need, since CDHPs often come with very high deductibles. Companies can continue to help their employees—in addition to their own bottom lines—by offering price transparency tools as part of their health benefits packages."

Shopping for medical care the same way consumers shop for other goods, like cars or TVs, is a new concept in the American healthcare marketplace. But as consumers start to investigate medical procedure costs, they're finding that prices for medical services vary wildly—often by a factor of at least five to ten times—from one provider to another. And with more Americans realizing the benefits of shopping around for healthcare, employers are in prime position to help usher in this new way of navigating the healthcare marketplace.

Savvy businesses already realize the benefit of offering medical price comparison tools to their employees as a way to keep healthcare costs down for everyone. Price transparency tools like MyMedicalShopper help healthcare consumers compare healthcare costs from multiple providers at the same time, offering real-time insights to help save as much money as possible. And as more Americans demand these types of services, it's only a matter of time before these types of transparency tools become an expected part of employer-sponsored health benefits packages.

About MYMEDICALSHOPPER:
MMS Analytics, Inc. dba MyMedicalShopper™ is a big data company with big dreams for healthcare. Co-founder and CEO Mark Galvin gave rise to the company out of the need to provide consumers and companies who provide healthcare benefits to their employees with transparency — the leverage needed to make solid decisions on their healthcare and improve their quality of life. Consumers previously ignorant of price variations in procedures and testing utilize real-time health insurance plan pricing information that makes it possible to choose care based on price, quality, and convenience. Experts document that as much as $1 Trillion could be slashed annually from the cost of healthcare in the U.S. Their goal is to transform the healthcare industry into a fair market for consumers.

For more information visit http://www.MyMedicalShopper.com.

Sources:
1.    Auerbach, Steven. "Six best practices for encouraging consumer-driven health plan enrollments". Employee Benefit Advisor. https://www.employeebenefitadviser.com/opinion/six-best-practices-for-encouraging-consumer-driven-health-plan-enrollments. Accessed June 21, 2018.
2.    Beaton, Thomas. "What are the Pros and Cons of Consumer Directed Health Plans?". HealthPayer Intelligence. https://healthpayerintelligence.com/news/what-are-the-pros-and-cons-of-consumer-directed-health-plans. Accessed June 21, 2018.
3.    Rivera, Andreas. "The Pros and Cons of High Deductible Health Plans". Business News Daily. https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/10723-pros-cons-high-deductible-health-plan.html. Accessed June 21, 2018.

SOURCE MyMedicalShopper

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